Aruba Cloud data center time zones
| data center |
location |
region |
GMT [1] |
| Data Center Arezzo |
Italy, Arezzo |
IT1 |
+1 |
| Data Center Arezzo |
Italy, Arezzo |
IT2 |
+1 |
| Global Cloud Data Center |
Italy, Bergamo |
IT3 |
+1 |
| Czech Republic Data Center |
Czech Republic, Ktiš |
CZ1 |
+1 |
| France Data Center |
France, Paris |
FR1 |
+1 |
| Germany Data Center |
Germany, Frankfurt |
DE1 |
+1 |
| United Kingdom Data Center |
United Kingdom, London |
UK1 |
0 |
| Poland Data Center |
Poland, Warsaw |
PL1 |
+1 |
1. Greenwich Mean Time.
Difference between GMT and UTC
UTC (
Coordinated Universal Time) is the official time standard used worldwide to synchronize systems (NTP, atomic clocks, GPS, etc.).
GMT (
Greenwich Mean Time) is a historical reference and is now mainly used informally, although in practical terms they coincide (both = +00:00) on most days of the year.
In technical contexts, UTC is preferable because it is more precise, is not affected by seasonal changes (such as daylight saving time), is officially regulated at scientific level by the BIPM (
Bureau International des Poids et Mesures) and supports leap seconds, which GMT does not.
This guide always refers to UTC, as it is the recognized technical standard for system synchronization.
What clock synchronization is
In distributed systems, such as cloud services, it is essential for all nodes (Cloud Servers, VMs, containers) to have the same time. If clocks are not synchronized, this can cause security issues, inconsistencies in logs and application malfunctions.
Clock synchronization provides several benefits:
- accurate timestamps in logs and certificates, which are essential for reconstructing events and verifying activities;
- prevents authentication errors caused by unsynchronized clocks, such as those that can occur with SSL certificates or when using OTP codes;
- consistent logs across different systems, allowing you to follow the correct chronological sequence of events;
- consistent and reliable databases and multi-node systems.
Having the correct time is not just a matter of punctuality: it is an essential requirement for security, proper log management and the correct operation of any cloud infrastructure.
Synchronization and geographical location
You can use INRiM public NTP servers even if your VM is hosted in a data center located outside Italy. Synchronization works correctly and ensures maximum accuracy for a simple reason:
- the NTP protocol synchronizes the system clock with UTC (Coordinated Universal Time), which provides a globally valid time reference, regardless of the time zone of the country where the machine is located.
In other words, the physical location of the server does not matter: synchronization with UTC(IT) provided by INRiM is effective and reliable anywhere.
The time zone is an operating system setting: once the system receives UTC time from the NTP servers, it automatically applies the configured time zone (e.g. Europe/Rome, Europe/Amsterdam, UTC, etc.), determining how the time is displayed in logs and services.
The role of INRiM and NTP servers
The NTP (Network Time Protocol) protocol is used to keep clocks synchronized by automatically updating the system clock. In Italy, you can use INRiM (
Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca Metrologica). This institute provides the official Italian time scale, UTC(IT), based on atomic clocks and synchronized with Universal Time (UTC).
INRiM provides public NTP servers (for example ntp1.inrim.it, ntp2.inrim.it, time.inrim.it) that you can use to synchronize the clocks of your Cloud Servers with the official time scale.
This configuration provides:
- accurate timestamps, with minimal deviation from the official time;
- consistency across different systems, useful for logs and distributed transactions;
- greater operational reliability by reducing errors caused by clock discrepancies.
Configuring synchronization in cloud services
When configuring a Cloud Server or VM, always make sure that its clock is synchronized.
You can do this by installing and configuring an NTP service.
Linux (Ubuntu and Debian)
- Install the chrony service:
sudo apt update
sudo apt install chrony
- configure the NTP servers:
- restart the service:
sudo systemctl restart chrony
- check the synchronization status:
chronyc tracking
timedatectl status
Linux (AlmaLinux and CentOS)
Windows